


A Sindarin Lady of the North

by erunyauve



Category: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Epistolary, F/M, Tolklang nerdiness warning
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-26
Updated: 2015-03-15
Packaged: 2018-02-22 18:46:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2517977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/erunyauve/pseuds/erunyauve
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arothir's wife writes letters to her family.  Inspired by A Woman of Independent Means, by Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey.  (This fic follows 'The Match' and might be better understood in the context of what happens in that story.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Laer, FA 20, Dorthonion

**Author's Note:**

> Vocabulary: Adar, Adda - 'Father', 'Papa'; Aman, Amma - 'Mother', 'Mama'; Odhellim - 'Noldor'; Garthurian - 'Doriath'.  
> As always, I've relied a lot on Helge Fauskanger's Ardalambion website, particularly his Ilkorin wordlist.

**Laer, FA 20, Dorthonion**

Dearest Adda,

Arothir and I were quite aware that our meeting at the Mereth Aderthad was not by chance, but calculated by our kin in hope of making a beneficial match. I know you would never encourage me to marry without love, and I am certain that all you heard of Arothir convinced you that we would be companionable. You can only blame yourself for knowing me too well.

Our actions, if perhaps rash, were taken by mutual agreement and with no urging on either side, and I do not regret them. Moreover, I assure you that Aman Edhellos and Adar Angrod, while happy for their son, were no more pleased than were you. They have been nothing but kind to me, however. You may also be assured that your status has risen among the Odhellim, for they see that I am neither unlettered nor ignorant and credit you (as they should) with my education. The books you carried out of Garthurian have stood us well. (1)

Most importantly, I do not want you to squander the benefits of this match. You must think of our people. Tôr Fingolfin is not Elu; he does not demand your deference or issue orders from afar. He asks only for your allegiance and contribution to your mutual defence and will not interfere with the affairs of our people. And it shall certainly be to your personal advantage to claim a son among the princes of the Odhellim. You will be regarded a representative of our people, and consulted in matters of importance, greatly enhancing your status among the lords of the Mithrim. (2,3)

I send this with a letter to you from Edhellos and Angrod. I beg you to accept it and return their good wishes. It is common, among the Odhellim, for the mother of the bride to gift the groom with a bejewelled chain, and it would be well received if you would do likewise in Amma's place. (4)

I also enclose a letter for Lhinel, for I miss her dearly. If I have a regret, it is that I have left my sister to take my place as the lady of our people without warning or instruction. Still, I am hoping that you can spare her for a visit soon. In addition, I would very much like to have Amma's tapestry of Cuiviénen, if you can bear to part with it for a little while.

Your dutiful daughter,

Meril

* * *

Dearest Lhinel,

I miss you terribly, and I hope that you are not overwhelmed by the role I have left to you.

As for me, I am kept quite occupied helping Aman Edhellos with the ordering of her household. To our surprise, we are each learning from the other, for in Tirion, she had only to concern herself with the affairs of her own house. As Adar Angrod and his brother are now lords of their own people, she has the responsibility of an entire fortress. And I have long been Lady to Adda's people, but our simple life in Mithrim was far from the drawing rooms of Tirion. Some of our work is pure indulgence - selecting silks for the receiving room or silver for the head table. Yet much of it, as you have no doubt discovered, is quite serious. How much grain will we need to store for winter? Which servants may be trusted not to gossip? The difficulty of managing a large staff is new to both of us. If a household is poorly run, it is the lord who will be judged by it, but if all is well, none will notice save the lord. (And, as Edhellos often says, you must be certain that the lord does take notice.)

I am also finding my place among the Odhellim. I do not forget my own kindred, but I am anxious that I do not disturb any conventions of behaviour, for all the Mithrim might be judged by my actions. I have taken to covering my hair, as the Odhellim do, though I must confess that I do so less out of propriety than practicality, for it keeps my hair in place no matter how fierce the wind. Moreover, Lord Aegnor, Angrod's brother, has just returned from Thargelion with a half dozen silk cethrae as a bride-gift, and they are simply too lovely not to wear. (5)

Be assured, however, that still I sing our greeting to the stars at twilight. Edhellos surprised me with a lovely painting of Lake Mithrim, and I like to think of you and Adda when I look upon it. When I sing to the stars, I know you are doing likewise, and I feel near to you despite the many leagues that separate us.

I have asked Edhellos if she has made no paintings of Tirion or the Two Trees, for I am filled with curiosity, but she said that they do not need reminders of their past, and look only to the new land with hope. I thought it a strange answer, for her painting of our home brings only fond memories.

I leave to you my half-finished copies of Adda's books. I hope that you will continue them, as the originals are almost too fragile to handle now, and in addition, you will improve your command of the Odhellen script. I am told that they have even begun to favour the script over Daeron's cirth in Garthurian. It is so much more efficient, and easier on the hand.

My Quenya is improving, though I have no real need of it, for my family had adopted our language even before I came here. Still, you know that I have long been eager to learn it, and sought every opportunity to listen to the speech of the Odhellim when they first came to Mithrim. At last, I have a proper teacher, and indeed could not have a better one than my husband. I steal him for walks in the afternoon, and we trade words for all the creatures and plants we see. Every once in a while, we find something that is new to both of us, and then we must devise our own names. It is almost like a secret language that is our alone.

But, I know that you must be eager to hear about this husband I have taken, my Arothir - or at least, I am eager to tell you of him. (I fear I shall sound like a giddy young girl, but I shall try my best for dignity!)

At first meeting, I did not realise how very shy he is, for he was not so with me. He speaks softly - but that is not quite it - for many speak softly and yet are heard. It is only that he lacks confidence that he will be heard, and others soon interrupt and talk over him. One must draw him out, and speak of confidences, and make him talk of what impassions him, and he is a different elf altogether, quite lively even. He holds his griefs close, and as with many who withhold their anger, he does not let go of grievances easily. To that end, we have agreed to be frank with one another, and I am quick to address him when I sense that he is upset. Rarely, though, am I the cause of his anger, nor is he of mine. Through the foolish lens of love, what might annoy us in others is seen to be adorable - or at least, correctible - in a lover.

What he will not be is a leader among his people, but we are content in Dorthonion. As much as I would like my own household to run, Arothir has no wish for a realm of his own. He dreads his weekly exercises with the cavalry his father has assigned to him; he is not one to shout orders or make decisions about the elves assigned to him and their provisional needs. Having done the latter for Adda, I help as much as I can. I sense, at times, that Arothir regrets that he ever left Tirion. He has no thirst for adventure; he simply would be left in peace. And if it is within my power, I mean to be guardian and gatekeeper of that peace.

I have so much more to tell you, but the messenger is waiting on me, and I must seal this letter if it is to go with her.

Your loving sister,

Meril

* * *

(1) Odehllim (S, Ilk?)  
'Noldor' (class pl). _Odhel_ , Tolkien tells us, later became _Gódhel_. It was originally a blending of _3O_ , 'from, away, out of' and _edhel_ , 'elf'. It literally means 'elf away from' or 'exiled'. The form _Gódhel_ was a blending with the original clan name, which came from _NGOLOD_ , 'one of the wise folk'. Although we do have the Ilkorin word _go_ from the stem _3O_ , Tolkien also decided that _3_ , which became _h_ and then _g_ , was dropped altogether in Ilkorin. ( _The War of the Jewels_ , 'Quendi and Eldar' pp 364, 378-9 pub Houghton Mifflin; see also _The Lost Road_ , 'Etymologies')

(2) Tôr (Ilk)  
'King' (of a people, not a region)

(3) Elu (S, Ilk?)  
I changed my mind several times about Thingol vs Elu. _Thingol_ seems like an unlikely word for the Mithrim to use - it means 'Grey-cloak', which would not be notable to them. It was the Noldor who named the Sindar the 'Grey-elves' due to the grey cloaks worn by the Mithrim. So, even though it's given as an originally Ilkorin word, I think it would be Northern Sindarin as spoken by the Noldor, not by the Mithrim themselves. _Elu_ , as an Ilkorin word, is somewhat guesswork. The word for 'double' is given in the Etymologies as Quenya _atwa_ and Ilkorin _adu_ , probably from an original Common Eldarin _atawâ_. I'm not sure that we can assume that _-wë_ would likewise become _-u_ in Ilkorin (we have other examples in which this ending is dropped altogether, such as _salch_ from _salakwê_ , but that wouldn't work with _Elwë_ , since you would end up with _El_ , 'star'). In any case, _Elu_ is valid in modern Sindarin.

(4) Amma (Ilk)  
'Mama'. This is entirely invented as a hypocoristic form of attested _Aman_.

(5) I have taken to covering my hair...  
This is canon, actually. There is no reason to think that the Sindar did not cover their hair, but we know that the Noldor did, at least in Tolkien's early conception of the Elves:  
_...And the people called her Idril of the Silver Feet * in that she went ever barefoot and bareheaded, king's daughter as she was, save only at pomps of the Ainur... ._ ( _The Book of Lost Tales 2_ , 'The Fall of Gondolin' p 165 pub Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Kindle Edition)  
We have evidence that hair coverings persisted in the Third Age, though perhaps only at formal occasions, along with a description of Tolkien's 'tressure', as he translates the word _cathrae_ :  
_Above [Arwen's] brow her head was covered with a cap of silver lace netted with small gems, glittering white... ._ ( _LOTR_ , 'Many Meetings' p 227 pub Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Kindle Edition)  
_cethrae_ (S) is presumably the plural of _cathrae_.


	2. Rhîw, FA 20, Dorthonion

**Rhîw, FA 20, Dorthonion**

Dearest Lhinel,

It was so good to see you, if only for the short time Adda could spare you. I hope the harvest was not too hectic! But, you hardly needed my instruction, after the many years you helped me with the lembas.

Our own harvest was rather meagre. We had the last of the garden vegetables, and of course gourds and potatoes, but this land is not suitable for large crops. We must get our grain from Himlad. Adar Angrod has explained that his cousins and their people know more of cultivation than most of the Odhellim because they lived in seclusion for many years.

He would say no more, but it was evident that an enmity exists between our lords and these cousins. Having now met them, I can give you my own impressions.

I had heard that all of Prince Fëanor's sons, save the first and last, were as dark as are you and I, but Celegorm, the elder lord of Himlad, is quite fair of lock and look. The younger lord, Curufin, is pleasing enough in face, but his beauty does not reach his eyes.

Perhaps I am unfair, and predisposed to see these cousins through the eyes of my husband and his family. Yet, Adda has always said that I know what people hide in their hearts, and to be frank, they discomfit me. Indeed, I had an unpleasant encounter with the brothers, but I hope they might gain some respect for our people by it.

I was waiting for the stable hand to bring my horse when the brothers returned from a hunting expedition. As they dismounted, Celegorm, the fair-haired one, remarked that he thought it amusing that that the pious son of his most self-righteous cousin should have been caught seducing a _Sinda_ (as they call us in their tongue).

I am certain that he believed that I could not understand his words, but I now have a good understanding of Quenya. I wish I could have replied likewise, but I am not yet able to speak it with confidence. Instead, I told him in our tongue that all the proper vows were spoken, and that if he were under the impression that the daughters of Beleriand were so easily seduced, he was certain to be painfully disabused of this notion.

In retrospect, perhaps I should have let the brothers think me ignorant of their language, but you know I have never liked subterfuge. The direct way is best, I think, if one has the nerve for it.

Still, something remains untold. Lhinel, you must promise to say nothing of this to Adda, for I write only of my own misgivings. I do not know where the grievances lie, and likely they are of no import to others. Yet, I saw that the brothers and my family treated one another with determined politeness. When people dislike one another, they do not hide it. I sense an injury that all have agreed to set aside, yet underneath, it festers. Arothir would rather cut out his tongue than confront another, but his father is quick to speak his mind. Nonetheless, aside from my own experience (which I did not report), the visit passed quite peacefully. (Still, more than once I saw Edhellos giving Angrod a fierce look, in warning lest he speak too freely.)

Now, winter closes upon us, and it is not as in Mithrim - we get a good deal more snow, though the wind does not blow as it does by the lake. Arothir is away with his cavalry unit, taking their turn at patrolling the northern border. I do not worry particularly for him, for Orcs have no love of the cold, and are unlikely to launch any attacks in this season. In any event, Arothir's patrol is only looking for signs that they have come into Dorthonion - should they find anything, it is Aegnor's warriors who will track them down.

I am teaching all hands that can be spared to make bayberry candles. The Odhellim do not have much use for them, as they have their magical blue lamps, but we can trade them with Garthurian and the Naugrim for things we need. We also put up many preserves this summer, and have tamed some of the great deer cows for milk and butter. Our lands are but a fief under Lord Finrod, and we receive a stipend from him, but Aman Edhellos is determined to have means of her own for our household needs.

To that end, Arothir and I will be journeying to Mithrim, to see how the folk of the Ered Lómin make cheese from deer milk. Of course, we plan to visit you and Adda as well! We have not yet settled upon the time, however, for I think you may have some news forthcoming? It has not escaped my notice that twice in your last letter, and several times during your visit, you spoke of Esgalion. It is strange to think that the youth who liked to test the ice on the lake (and more than once fell through it) is now a high captain in the service of Tôr Fingolfin.

Therefore, I await the date of your betrothal ceremony, if I have read you aright, and we will arrange our journey to be present for it. I am eager to see you and Adda, especially Adda, for it seems as if many rounds of the Sun have passed since I last saw him, and I miss him terribly.

To you and your captain, my good wishes. As always, your loving sister,

Meril


End file.
